Looking to buy used freestanding for primary heat

[JustisWay]

Hello. We live in Northern Idaho, on Lake Pend Orielle. We have a 2,300 sq ft home (basement included). I'd say the main level is about 1,200 sq ft? and we have our master bedroom in a loft style room upstairs, so it's vaulted with tongue and groove/beams. In the basement there's a Russian Fireplace installed but we just can't seem to keep it stoked enough to heat the whole home consistently. (The brick chimney runs through the center of the home and is exposed throughout. We have a propane stove on the main level but want to replace that with a wood freestanding as propane is pretty costly!

Our budget will only allow buying a used stove at this time and there are many to choose from. I'm just worried about getting one that will burn all night and heat the whole home.

Here are some of the models that are available in my area right now. Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

-Timberline
-Vermont Castings Defiant 1910 (thought it has a crack in the top cast iron. big deal?)
-Acorn Voyager
-Osburn (no model listed. measures 32" highx 29" deep x 24" deep)
-Vermont Castings Resolute
-another Timberline with double doors
-Fisher, bicentennial series, grandpa bear model
-Drolet Baltic 2
-Buck Wood Stove

Thanks again for any feedback. Truly appreciate it.

I've included a picture of our current propane stove and the hearth where the new freestanding will be sitting.

 

[begreen]

It's a shame they put the fireplace in the basement. Done right these can be good heaters. Will the Russian fireplace heat the house well during mild weather so that you only need the main floor wood stove during below freezing weather? If so, having a big stove upstairs may work ok, especially with the high ceiling.

Of the stoves listed the Drolet Baltic II is the newest and a good heater, though it may be a tad oversized. What is its condition? Need more info on the Osburn. It is made by the same company that makes Drolet. The old VC stoves very likely would need some work so unless in excellent internal condition and with NO cracks they are better avoided. The old Fishers and Timberlines are smoke dragons and have a big appetite for wood.

 

[JustisWay]

It's a shame they put the fireplace in the basement. Done right these can be good heaters. Will the Russian fireplace heat the house well during mild weather so that you only need the main floor wood stove during below freezing weather? If so, having a big stove upstairs may work ok, especially with the high ceiling.

Of the stoves listed the Drolet Baltic II is the newest and a good heater, though it may be a tad oversized. What is its condition? Need more info on the Osburn. It is made by the same company that makes Drolet. The old VC stoves very likely would need some work so unless in excellent internal condition and with NO cracks they are better avoided. The old Fishers and Timberlines are smoke dragons and have a big appetite for wood.

Yes, the Russian Fireplace heats pretty well when the weather is more mild. However, we've already gone through two cords, if not more, wood since September and it'll be cold until the beginning of June. It's a cool set up and you can stick up to 6' sticks into it. We just don't have enough cords to last us all winter to keep us warm with that beast. It takes a day to get the bricks warm enough and as busy as we are, we start a lot with cold bricks.

Still waiting on good pictures of the Drolet. They say it's only 2 years old.

 

[begreen]

2 cords in your neck of the woods by this time is not unusual, especially if the house has a large amount of glazing and only moderate insulation. What type wood are you burning and how well seasoned is it?

 

[maple1]

You would be replacing the propane stove with a wood stove? Would you then have any other heat source other than wood? I don't think I would want to rely solely on wood for my heating - I would still want something else to fall back on. Your insurance company might also?

 

[begreen]

Is the flue that the propane stove is now connected to proper and safe for a wood stove? Do you purchase wood or cut/split/stack your own?

 

[JustisWay]

2 cords in your neck of the woods by this time is not unusual, especially if the house has a large amount of glazing and only moderate insulation. What type wood are you burning and how well seasoned is it?

Well, not as well as it'll be seasoned and ready next year. we didn't start gathering dead trees until August.

 

[JustisWay]

Is the flue that the propane stove is now connected to proper and safe for a wood stove? Do you purchase wood or cut/split/stack your own?

Yes, our neighbor said we should be able to just swap it right out. We cut/split/stack our own.

 

[JustisWay]

You would be replacing the propane stove with a wood stove? Would you then have any other heat source other than wood? I don't think I would want to rely solely on wood for my heating - I would still want something else to fall back on. Your insurance company might also?

Yes, replacing propane with wood. We're actually going to keep the propane just in case we need to hook it back up. We have electric baseboards ran off thermostat if we need to take off for a bit. I am an independent insurance agent and know having insurance on just wood heat as primary is frowned upon

 

[JustisWay]

2 cords in your neck of the woods by this time is not unusual, especially if the house has a large amount of glazing and only moderate insulation. What type wood are you burning and how well seasoned is it?

a mixture of local wood we find. Tamarack, pine, fir. Next year we'll be better prepared and start gathering earlier and hope to stock up on a ton of tamarack.

 

[begreen]

Next year we'll be better prepared and start gathering earlier and hope to stock up on a ton of tamarack.

It's already next year. The time to be stacking that split wood is now. Dry wood will provide more heat.

 

[begreen]

Yes, our neighbor said we should be able to just swap it right out. We cut/split/stack our own.

Have that verified by a professional sweep. It may be ok, but you'll want to be sure the chimney and clearances are correct.

 

[SpaceBus]

Yes, replacing propane with wood. We're actually going to keep the propane just in case we need to hook it back up. We have electric baseboards ran off thermostat if we need to take off for a bit. I am an independent insurance agent and know having insurance on just wood heat as primary is frowned upon

We almost couldn't get insurance due to our proximity to the water and a wood stove as primary with thermostatically controlled baseboard heaters as backup.

 

[ShawnLiNY]

Stay away from the Cracked VC .this is a sure sign of overfiring and unit could have major issues not readily visible such as warped joints preventing the stove from being truly airtight and controllable

 

[SpaceBus]

Stay away from the Cracked VC .this is a sure sign of overfiring and unit could have major issues not readily visible such as warped joints preventing the stove from being truly airtight and controllable

This is exactly what happened when we moved into a house with a cracked Fireback VC Defiant. It had several other unseen issues and it was incredibly difficult to control and I could not leave it unattended for any amount of time.

 

[maple1]

We almost couldn't get insurance due to our proximity to the water and a wood stove as primary with thermostatically controlled baseboard heaters as backup.

In that situation, I'm pretty sure the electric should most always be considered the primary, and wood the secondary.

I think. Not an insurance pro, but I have repeatedly heard it.

 

[SpaceBus]

In that situation, I'm pretty sure the electric should most always be considered the primary, and wood the secondary.

I think. Not an insurance pro, but I have repeatedly heard it.

They didn't want to count the baseboard heaters. Next year we are going to try and renegotiate for insurance after we make some improvements. I really want to put a wood cook stove in the house, but I worry about insurance, but there are a few listed cookers I like.

 

[ShawnLiNY]

This is exactly what happened when we moved into a house with a cracked Fireback VC Defiant. It had several other unseen issues and it was incredibly difficult to control and I could not leave it unattended for any amount of time.

What makes these type of circumstances so dangerous is if the operator doesn’t know the stove isn’t supposed to run like that ( someone who knows the issues can make smaller fires , completely limit any air controls , close manual pipe damper etc ) still could be dangerous but at least they are aware .depending on where the air leak is some cracks or warps expand with heat causing a blast furnace type air feed that can only be slowed when fuel source is consumed ( this is a nightmare scenario for someone who has stove installed at minimum to combustibles as the stove and pipe will go way over rated temps )

 

[SpaceBus]

What makes these type of circumstances so dangerous is if the operator doesn’t know the stove isn’t supposed to run like that ( someone who knows the issues can make smaller fires , completely limit any air controls , close manual pipe damper etc ) still could be dangerous but at least they are aware .depending on where the air leak is some cracks or warps expand with heat causing a blast furnace type air feed that can only be slowed when fuel source is consumed ( this is a nightmare scenario for someone who has stove installed at minimum to combustibles as the stove and pipe will go way over rated temps )

One windy night I had about a half load in there and it started puffing, but the thermostat was nearly closed and any amount I tried to open it would cause the stove to try and run away. I attempted to open the door to see what was going on, and in the second I had the door cracked it almost went to "thermonuclear" as people around here say. In the brief moment I saw the half load was mostly coals and I had only loaded it an hour before. That was the night we decided to stop trying to limp the stove through winter and bought a new one.